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Jonah Lazerine

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NISSWA – Dillon Solid lived up to his name during Nisswa's 1-0 win over Waite Park Tuesday, pitching a four-inning stretch in relief with only two hits and one walk against no runs as he picked up the win. Solid contributed at the plate as well, knocking in Tory Miller with a double in the seventh inning to sever the 0-0 tie. The game had remained a pitchers' duel leading up to Solid's RBI double. Nate DeChaine started on the mound for Nisswa, showing poise early by escaping a second inning that saw Waite Park put a pair of runners in scoring position.

BREEZY POINT - The Mizuno blade connected purely with the ball, sending it spiraling over a tree guarding the first green of the Whitebirch Golf Course. With a light fade working the shot left to right, the ball descended from the cloudy June sky and landed three feet from the hole. After the tap-in birdie landed in the bottom of the cup, Guy Green and Cole Bliss celebrated their second-place finish and share of the $800 purse in the third annual Breezy Cup. The 115-yard wedge that allowed Green and Bliss to finish behind this year's champions Riley Johnson and Nevin Green, who fired a 4-un

PERHAM — Saul Sasse fired an 82 for the fourth-place Pine River-Backus Tigers to qualify for the Class 1A individual tournament during Thursday’s Section 6-1A final round at Lakeside Golf Club. “Toward the middle of the season I started shooting really well, but since then I’ve settled down I’ve been more consistent,” said Sasse. “It was a really nice day out with some wind, so some shots were harder than they appeared, but I lost the most strokes on the green. I had some 3-putts and need to work on that to prepare for state.

For Central Lakes College, the 2014 season will be about blending the old with the new. After the recent resignation of head coach Blake Eller, Neil Linhart returns to the helm after serving as head coach in 2013. Linhart is optimistic the Raiders will improve on an 11-10-1 (8-5-1 in the Southern Division) season despite what will presumably be a weather-shortened season. The Raiders were scheduled to kick off their season April 5-6 in the Crossover Tournament at Fergus Falls but that tournament was postponed because of wet field conditions.

For Central Lakes College, security was a good thing to have on Saturday. Despite a 90-79 loss to Hibbing in the regular-season finale, the Raiders maintain the No. 2 seed in the North Division heading into the MCAC state/Region 13 tournament. Though things remained close through the first five minutes, the Cardinals hit a 14-3 run with the help of Sam Willis, who led Hibbing with 26 points. Following a tip-in by Central Lakes’ John Jedneak to break the run, Jerry Pratt glided in from the baseline for a slam that put Hibbing up 36-23 with three minutes to go.

Jonah Lelwica doesn’t like staying in his comfort zone. The Pequot Lakes senior recently joined the wrestling and golf teams, leaving hockey and baseball, two sports he’s played since elementary school. The results have varied: Lelwica cracked the varsity rotation in his first season for the Patriots’ golf team in 2013, struggling with inconsistency but showing promise. His tenure with the Road Crew wrestling team has fared better: Lelwica has totaled a 4-2 record (three pins) between the 152- and 160-pound classes since joining the team a week into the season.

Andrew Johnson doesn’t back down. The St. Agnes High School graduate finished his Central Lakes College career by passing for 207 yards in a 27-14 loss to Rochester Sunday at Husky Stadium at St. Cloud State University. And, what a solid career it was. Johnson passed for 2,513 yards and 25 touchdowns with 13 picks in 11 games during his final season at CLC. His dominance wasn’t relegated just to this season. Johnson led the Raiders to the MCAC state championship in 2012, a title that was voided due to use of an ineligible player.

The story of Kyle Whipple and Crosby Steen crossing paths is an unlikely one. It’s also the backbone of a second year North Amiercan3 Hockey League franchise. Following the Breezy Point North Stars’ inaugural season that consisted of only four wins in a 6-month schedule in 2012-13, they sit in third place in their division with a 2-7-1 record through this season’s first month of play. The fuel for Breezy Point’s improvement can be traced back to two North Stars veterans in particular — Captain Crosby Steen and assistant captain Kyle Whipple.

A 6-4 record does not do justice to the 2013 Brainerd Lumberjacks season. The 6-4 mark does not describe the roster adjustments and overall hardships the team has had to overcome to make it this far. The Midwest Premier Football League championship game against the Minnesota Sting will be the Lumberjacks’ fourth appearance in five years and in two separate leagues, and it will be their biggest challenge of the year. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Saturday at East Ridge High School in Woodbury.

Tory Miller got to live the dream on Thursday. With the bases loaded and the game knotted up 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth, Miller smacked a high line drive into center field to propel Brainerd into its first state tournament appearance since 2004. “This is every player’s dream, to be at the plate in the bottom of the ninth with two outs and the game on the line,” said Miller. “I saw a fastball, got the barrel on it, and drove it.” Though Miller provided the late-game heroics, Brainerd needed other players to get into position to win.